Sai sankalpa has it that
Veda chanting be given first priority during Swami’s darshan at Sai
Kulwant Hall. Swami’s Grace ensured that veda-students of Maharashtra
chanted Veda for 15 minutes in His Divine presence on the last aashaadhii
ekaadashii day. Encouraged by this loving gesture on Swami’s part, more
students are now gravitating towards learning Veda. The possibility of
chanting in Swami’s presence again on the next aashaadhii
[Friday, 7th July 2006] is too tempting to ignore.
Let’s all make a concerted, heartfelt effort. May Swami Grace us with
many more opportunities.

Towards this end,
Dharmakshetra has scheduled “Veda ghoSha” by samithis of Mumbai, Navi
Mumbai & Panvel on Saturday, the 12th November 2005 at 6:00 pm
for about 30 to 40 mins; i.e. at the beginning of global akhanda bhajan.

To ensure that all of us
speak God’s mantras with one united voice, two rehearsals on the
previous two Sundays are scheduled from 2:30 pm to 6:00 pm.
On 30th Oct at Sai Prem, Vashi… and Dharmakshetra rehearsal
on 6th Nov. Trained veda-chanters from Mumbai, Navi Mumbai &
Panvel are taking part in these rehearsals.

Contrary to popular
belief, keen listening is more important during Veda
chanting. Perfect pronunciation automatically follows.
Quite difficult to believe, but true. Some team members chant at their
own speed without being aware that the neighbour has fallen slightly
behind. Listening to our team members will ensure that we chant in
perfect sync.

When the teacher is
correctly re-explaining a wrongly chanted svara, some students are
chanting in a low humming voice together with the teacher. They are
not listening. If they did in the first place, the mistake would not
happen. Even if the student feels he is perfect enough to hum alongwith
the teacher, the other students get distracted, affecting their
concentration.

Keen listening is a
must. Close your eyes and listen. It appears odd. Initial
discomfort is felt. Nevertheless, this enables the mind to focus all the
divergent energy channels going out to all the ten indriiyas into one
singular-concentrated-energy-channel going only to the ear.

Breath Control & Pause

yasya nishvasitam vedaaH
says the shruti. It means “God breathes in and out the veda mantras”
Consequently, we must chant with proper and full breathing. At all full
stops, a full pause must be taken with a proper breath intake to ensure
vibrancy in the succeeding mantra. Not taking a proper breath means one
will jump ahead of the chanting leader, and the leader might have to skip
a word to catch up with the discordant chanter. Those with naturally loud
volumes should avoid “jumping ahead” especially as they will affect the
entire group. They should wait for the leader to chant the first akshara
at the beginning of the sentence and catch up by chanting the second
akshara in sync.

Technical Pause:
One must have a short pause before akaara series vowels in the beginning
of a word occuring in the middle of a sentence. As per shikshaa shaastra
[science of pronunciation] the line must be chanted with sandhi rules.
Example 1: akaara, [shrt pause] ukaara makaara, [shrt pause] iti. Ex 2:
niShkalo niranjano nirvikalpo niraakhyaatash-shuddho deva, [shrt pause]
eko naaraayanNaH. Ex 3: tasmaa-aadashvaa, [s.p.] ajaayanta. Ex. 4 :
saadhyaa, [s.p.] riShayashcha ye. Ex 5 : saashanaanashane, [s.p.] abhi.
One could put a comma at those places in the devanaagarii text as a
self-reminder that: “I have to pause here”.

Avoid jhatkaa
while chanting

Some students tend to
give a jhatkaa [sudden, short explosive raising of volume]
when chanting the lower / high pitched svaras. Some seniors with
traditional training also commit this mistake. This author also did it
till it was pointed out to him. The volume must be smooth and even
throughout. Too loud volume cannot be sustained without running out of
breath [before the actual full stop]. Too soft volume is considered a
fault. The ending mantras are chanted with higher pitch and volume as
they are special [ashiirvaada, lokaaH samastaaH, etc.]

Don’t make short vowels
long

Normally short vowels are
pronounced short. There exists a small allowance for those occuring at
the end of a sentence. They may be chanted long. This does not mean that
ALL those short endings should be chanted long. An “allowance” is like a
little grace mark. It cannot become the “rule”. There are occasions when
“prachodayaat” occurring at the end of all gaayatriis is pronounced
“prachodayaat-i ” or “prachodayaat-u ” or “prachodayaat-a ” Now
“prachodayaat” is not a short vowel ending. It is a
no vowel ending. This is not an example of the above allowance,
but incorrect pronunciation. The vowel sound at the end of the “dayaat” must
be cut off.

Shiva-shakti method of
chanting

If proper co-ordination
is achieved at our rehearsals, we may chant each line alternating between
ladies and gents. This gives a special flavour and gives a well rounded
listening experience. The standard beginning mantras upto “saaiishvaraaya
vidmahe…. prachodayaat” will be chanted by both ladies and gents. First
line of shaanti paaTha beginning with “bhadram karNebhiH” will be chanted
by ladies. Second line “bhadram pashyemaakshabhiH” by gents… and so on…
The standard ending mantras “sarve bhavantu sukhinaH” onwards will be
chanted again by both ladies and gents. This gives “punch” to a line as
all get a “breather” before the next line.

Dharmakshetra chanting:
next date

The 1st of
January 2006 happens to be a Sunday and the Christian new year. If the
majority does commit to make it to Dharmakshetra on that date, we propose
the next chanting session on the occasion of the new year.

Further chanting
selections

The currently five
samithi groups taking part may select one suukta with a time bound
commitment. Each samithi selects a different suukta for svaadhyaaya. The
same may be presented for chanting at the end of the study period… say
three to six months, depending on the portion.

Proposed are: [1]
gaNapati suukta, [2] naasadaasiit suukta; [3] hiraNyagarbha suukta; [4]
devii suukta; and [5] shrii suukta. Others not mentioned may be selected,
if one is so inclined. Audio and text will be made available.

Saama gaana singers
specialization

Swami has said “Among the
vedas, I am the saama veda” [bhagavadgiitaa 10:22] It means the most
difficult to master is the saama veda, which is also the most elevating
for the listener. Singers with a natural knack of mimicking the tune may
volunteer to learn saama veda songs. Even among braamhaNas, the saama
vedis just sing the saama songs at the ending puurNaahutii, which sort of
“climaxes” a yaaga. We are looking for singers who are willing to
specialize and learn at home from audio provided. The saama veda has very
few teachers left. We need to revive this tradition.